don't need a symbol on your chest
by ausllydawmoon
Summary: "Every school has a Superman. And, of course, every Superman has his Lois Lane. This is the story of Austin Moon and Kira Starr. It's such a pathetic story I had to share it, so just sit back and try not to vomit."/Or where things are not always what they seem. Auslly. One-shot.


Every school has a Superman. You know the type. Perfect hair, perfect eyes, perfect smile, perfect _life_. The perfect combination of sweet and sarcastic, funny and serious, partier and responsible student. Ours is the star basketball player. Others may play football, or lacrosse, or be on the track team, or maybe they do all four because they're the overachievers of overachievers.

Point is, the main character of our story is the model of those Superman douchebags. He's got the messy blonde hair, the perfect tan skin, the blinding smile, the mesmerizing brown eyes, and the rest of the stupid package.

If he's Superman, his best friend is Batman. Still technically in the same category with good enough looks to stand out from the rest of the mediocre guys, but he still pales in comparison.

And, of course, every Superman has his Lois Lane. Usually cheer captain, but not necessarily. As long as she's pretty, plays hard to get, and has friends she needs to make jealous, she qualifies. This one is no different. Our love interest has all the perfect skin, eyes, hair, whatever. They're all over each other.

At least, they _were_ all over each other.

Wait. I should probably tell you their names before I go on.

Austin Moon is our Superman. I mean, with a name like _Austin Moon_ it's like he was born to be the center of attention, the main character in every story. And with that hair, it looks like he's constantly got a spotlight shining on him, just the way he likes it.

Our Batman's alter ego is Dallas something or other. I don't know his last name, and quite frankly I don't care. He's marginally attractive and he's Austin Moon's best friend. That's really all that matters.

And our beautiful Lois Lane is Kira Starr. She's nice enough – the way the witch was nice to Hansel and Gretel right before she baked them into pies. But she's loyal as hell to her friends, so if you're in that group, I guess that's good for you.

Anyway, this is the story of Austin and Kira. It's such a pathetic story I had to share it, so just sit back and try not to vomit.

* * *

The thing you need to understand about Austin Moon is that it's pretty much impossible to get a read on the guy. Sure, he's always smiling and laughing, but that face doesn't change. Ever. Which means it's pretty much impossible to tell how he feels about anyone, even his friends. And since he flirts with every person he knows, everyone in that group was left for the longest time wondering who he liked. See, as flawless as Austin Moon is, he isn't really into talking about his feelings. No one really even knows his romantic history, which is strange because everyone else in his group of friends will proudly boast about their past conquests without even being asked.

Anyway, you can imagine the shock wave that rippled through the school once word got out that Dallas knew who Austin liked. The whispers among classmates were almost constant, like the rustling of leaves on a windy day or something. Instead of doing more important things like, I dunno, studying or paying attention in class, everyone in the school was fixated on speculating who had captured the affections of Austin Moon and trying to come up with ways to get the answer out of Dallas. As if either of them needed any more attention.

Turns out, Dallas himself spread the news that Austin told him about his crush. No surprise there; the Batman types are always the ones who stir up a hurricane of drama and sit in the eye of the storm with all the (usually made up) information. I guess everyone has their own way of feeling relevant and important.

A few weeks after that news spread, there was another wave of information that Austin had hooked up with this girl at the party over the weekend.

"Look, I don't know everything," Dallas said. "But if this girl didn't know Austin liked her before, she does now. I wouldn't be surprised if they were secretly dating."

Before all hell broke loose, Dallas told as many people as he could that the mystery girl was Kira Starr. So, of course, everyone turned to _her_. It was like some ridiculous carousel of stupid high school drama, and the vast majority of the class was eating it up.

"Hey, I don't kiss and tell!" Kira giggled to her friends in the hallway. When they started complaining, she held up a hand to silence them. "But if I _did_ , I'd say he's everything you'd expect him to be, and we may or may not be going out on Friday."

"Ugh, I hate you!" one of her giggling friends squealed. "You'll have to tell us all about it."

"I'm hurt that you think I wouldn't," Kira replied with a grin. "Besides, I'm gonna need all of you on call in that entire day. This is a date with _Austin Moon_. We gotta go all out."

"You're right," another of her friends said. (I honestly don't know any of their names, and they really don't matter.) "I mean, if you think about it, this is a date for all of us."

The other girls, even Kira, nodded solemnly. Impressing Austin Moon – that is, getting him to be any different from his usual charming, flirtatious self for Kira – was the biggest challenge they'd ever faced.

They really had nothing to worry about, though. Kira may be annoying and probably planning to take over the world, but she's gorgeous and nice enough to an average person's face to fool them into thinking she'd be friends with them. Since she actually _liked_ Austin, there was really no stopping her. But I digress.

Austin Moon was the perfect gentleman on their date, no surprise there. That's usually the tactic of the Main Character types: be perfect at the beginning of the relationship so people stop caring and don't notice you slowly turning into an asshole.

But Austin was different from those other Supermen. He was a gentleman _all_ the time. Because he's perfect. He and Kira were disgustingly in love for months, much longer than anyone thought they'd last.

But nobody cares about the happy relationships, do they?

When Kira Starr came to school with no makeup, dark circles under her eyes, and _alone_ , everybody figured what was up. Her friends swarmed her like piranhas, but instead of gnashing teeth, they offered her tissues and encouragement, although everyone knew they were secretly planning how to get Austin Moon to themselves. But they were ready to attack anyone who tried to get close to Kira, which I guess was kinda sweet, in a weird, group of mama bears sort of way.

"He just…dumped me," Kira said in between sniffles. "I mean, he'd been acting pretty distant and he wasn't being very nice, but I thought it was just the stress of finals coming up, you know?" She wiped her face with a tissue. "But then he _texted_ me out of the blue and said we were over."

Almost as if to prove her point, Austin Moon came strolling down the hall. Except…he wasn't Austin Moon. His clothes were all black. His hands were shoved in his pockets, and his head was down. The usual lopsided smile on his face wasn't there, and he glared daggers at anyone who tried to talk to him. It was like he changed overnight. Or maybe he knew Kira would reveal how much of an asshole he really was, so he just decided to embrace it.

Of course, the whispers started.

"I heard he was cheating on her," you would hear as you walked past the drinking fountain. "I always knew that whole golden boy thing was an act," someone would say in the locker room. Choruses of "Poor Kira" echoed through the bathrooms.

Marino High's sweetheart had been crushed, and by the school's Superman, no less. That couldn't slide.

That week, there was a fight at least once or twice a day. Austin wasn't in all of them – some were between guys who wanted Kira for themselves, or between guys who thought the other was siding with Austin (even though they were _all_ former friends of his), or whatever. But the majority of them were one, two, three guys ganging up on Austin and beating the crap out of him for hurting Kira.

He tried to fight back as best he could, but it was hopeless. Every day he'd end up in the nurse's office with a bloody nose or a busted lip or a black eye. He started wearing a black hoodie to school every day, the hood pulled down so no one could see how badly he'd been beat up.

No one really felt bad for him, though. He dumped a girl out of the blue over text. And it was _Kira Starr_. Everybody loved her. And everybody felt so betrayed that Austin Moon, the most perfect kid alive, would do something like that.

Eventually all of that died down. People got on with their lives, and Austin Moon basically faded into the shadows. The wounds went away, but Austin still wore that hoodie over his head every day, his hands shoved in his pockets, his eyes trained on the floor. It was pathetic.

And…that's basically it. I don't know why I felt like I had to tell the story. I guess it just makes you feel better about yourself? It warns you against being an asshole? I don't know. Austin Moon went from hero to zero in a matter of days. And I don't think he's fully recovered. It's like the smiling, charming, Superman of a guy never existed. And as much as I hate the idea of some elite group of kids ruling the school, Austin left a weird power vacuum in his wake. Now everything is just kinda off balance.

* * *

Dallas throws a New Year's Eve party at his house every year. It's basically the only thing he does independently, and that's only because Austin asked him to plan it freshman year and he's felt the need to do it ever since. But everyone knows about it, and more people attend than you'd think. I'm not proud of it, but even I stop by for a little bit.

It's almost like Austin is invisible now. Since he wears that hoodie all the time, he blends into the shadows and covers the spotlight of his bright hair. And he doesn't smile, either, so it's like all of his light, all of Austin Moon _himself_ , has just been…snuffed out. It's almost sad.

He's still at the party, though, leaning against the wall, one hand in his pocket while the other swirls the red cup in his hand. He's staring down at it intently, his jaw tight, as if his drink is showing him a future he doesn't like.

I don't know what comes over me, but I walk over to him. "So what's the real story?"

He glances up from his drink. If he's surprised someone is talking to him, he isn't showing it. He looks down again and mutters, "What, you don't believe Kira?"

"Not really."

He looks up again, the smallest, saddest hint of a smile on his face. "You're smart, Ally Dawson." Then he takes a sip of his drink.

I frown at him. "You know who I am?"

"Kira's locker is right across from yours. And besides, you never forget your first kiss."

 _Dammit_. I was hoping he forgot about that. But even though I can't stop myself from blushing, my embarrassment almost doesn't matter. There's a hint of life in his eyes now.

"We were six. That hardly counts."

"I like to think it does. You're the first girl who ever had a crush on me."

I roll my eyes. "Please. Every six-year-old at that school had a crush on you."

He smiles a little more. "Maybe. But you were the only one who kissed me."

"Whatever. I don't count it."

"And I do."

I cross my arms. "So, are you gonna tell me the truth about what happened with Kira or not?"

"Why do you care?" he asks, before taking another sip of his drink.

"I don't still have a crush on you," I tell him.

He raises an eyebrow at me. "I never said you did."

"Right. May I?" I point to his cup, and he smiles a little again and hands it to me. When I take a sip, I almost spit it out in surprise. I was expecting alcohol. He's drinking _lemonade_.

"Well, the truth is that Kira was having sex with Dallas throughout our entire relationship," he finally says.

"You must be really bad in bed." I wince a little as soon as I say it.

He looks down, smiling a little more and exhaling in an almost-laugh. "Ah, well, I don't think that was the issue."

"What, you want me to believe you blew her mind _so much_ she needed to have mediocre sex with Dallas just to stay grounded?"

This time he does laugh a little, and I hate how much I like the sound. "I never had sex with her," he admits. "I think I always sorta knew she was sleeping with Dallas. I guess I just wanted her to be the perfect girl I thought she was."

"You, sir, have way too much faith in the wrong people."

"Maybe." He shrugs, taking his lemonade back and finishing the rest of it. "But I think I'd rather go through life hoping for the best in people instead of expecting the worst."

"Well, are _you_ the perfect guy everyone thinks you are?"

He smiles again, his teeth showing just barely, and looks down at his empty cup. "I don't know about perfect. I like to think I'm not a total asshole, though, if that's what you're asking."

"Your whole shtick. Is it – er, was it an act?"

He shakes his head. "Nah. But even if you subconsciously know about it, catching your girlfriend in bed with your best friend and then being framed as the villain tends to…shake you a little."

"Shake you?" I gesture at his hoodie, his sunken face hidden under his hood. "Looks to me like it broke you."

"What can I say? ''Tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.' "

I raise my eyebrows. "Did you just quote Tennyson?"

"Did you just recognize it?" He raises his eyebrows back to me, and I can almost see sparks in his eyes, like that little twinge of life is trying to reignite Austin's light.

"Fair enough." I hesitate for a second, and then ask quietly, "Did you love her?"

"Who, Kira?" He scoffs. "No way. I mean, I guess I thought I did, but somewhere between catching her with Dallas and getting KO'd by him a few days later I realized that I loved the idea of being in a relationship with this girl I had wanted for ages more than I actually loved her." Then he gives me a sideways glance and almost grins. "Why? You jealous?"

"I don't have a crush on you!" I shove his chest lightly, and he laughs as his back hits the wall again. "That was, like, ten years ago. Come on."

" 'Methinks the lady doth protest too much.' "

"You're hopeless." I roll my eyes and start to walk away, but he catches my hand.

"Wait, I'm sorry," he says, though the smile is still in his voice. "I haven't talked to anyone in weeks. Why haven't we ever hung out?"

"Because we haven't had a real conversation in ten years and I hate all your friends."

"That's fair. But I like you, Ally Dawson."

I hate how much I _don't_ hate hearing those words flow so easily out of his mouth. He seems to be able to read my reaction, because he smiles. I never noticed he had dimples until now.

"Shut up," I mutter, looking away from him.

"I didn't even say anything!" he protests. The longer we talk, the more he seems to be flickering back to life within that sad shell of the person he used to be. It takes all my willpower not to smile at him, but then I realize that I really don't _care_. When I start smiling, he speaks up again. "Oh, you _so_ still have a crush on me."

I try to glare at him, but it probably doesn't go very well, judging by the way he laughs. I could be completely naïve, but it doesn't seem like he's laughing _at_ me. He did say he liked hoping for the best.

"So what if I do?" I ask, looking him in the eyes and silently daring him to tease me for it.

But he doesn't. Instead he just grins and leans towards me and uses his hand to block us from the rest of the party, like he's about to tell me a secret.

"If I'm being honest, some days I found myself looking forward to seeing you across the hall from Kira's locker more than I looked forward to seeing Kira."

His eyes are dancing. I open my mouth to blurt out some sarcastic response, but I'm interrupted before I can say anything.

"TEN! NINE! EIGHT!" everyone starts chanting. Couples smile at each other. Other people drunkenly stumble to the first single person they can find. Still others completely ignore it.

Austin raises his eyebrows at me in a silent challenge. I mimic his expression, staring him down. _Your move_.

But that doesn't stop me from pushing the hood off his head, which makes him grin. I meant to bring my hands back down to my sides after that, but he takes the opportunity to wrap his arms around me. And as the countdown reaches zero, he kisses me. A real, proper kiss, much better than the forbidden peck of two first-graders.

"So, maybe you're not a Superman," I tell him after we pull away.

"Huh?"

"Nothing."

"Wait, I wanna be Superman!" he complains.

I smile and kiss him again. "Just be Austin Moon instead."

* * *

 **yeah idk what this is i was just bored and this is what came of it so i hope you enjoyed? thanks for reading :)**


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